A few questions from a newbie about making good homebrew :0)

[Dan]

Hi there

Me and my flatmates just made a batch of homebrew (not a bad first attempt), and we're looking to make the next batch better. So, I've got just a few questions for the more seasoned veterans - you're advice is greatly appreciated!

1. We knew that after the week or so of brewing in the fermenter there would be sediment at the bottom. However, we were unsure if the sediment should be stirred back up into the mix when adding the yeast and stirring well just before bottling.

What should be done? I've read somewhere that the sediment is the waste product of fermentation, so it should be left in the fermenter and cleaned out after bottling - please let me know if this is right.

2. In your experience, is there a noticeable difference (in quality) between making a batch from the malt syrup or with the actual malt barley grains? I would expect that a batch made from grain would be better, but would like to know people's opinions. Also, it is much harder to make using the grains?

3. We are quite big fans of Bavarian-style Weisse beer (typically Hefeweizenbier). Does anyone have a good recipe for this? Is there a good website with recipes imitating famous brands (eg Hoegaarden)

Any help would be great. Thanks in advance!

Dan
Wellington, New Zealand

[Greig McGill]

Hey Dan,

1. Leave the sediment (trub - pronounced troob) in the fermenter. Unless you've done something really strange like left the beer on the yeast for months at very cold temperatures, there will be more than enough healthy viable yeast in suspension in your beer to carbonate it once you bottle. Some brewers filter it then seed back some healthy yeast to do the job if they are in doubt, but not many. There shouldn't be any need to add more yeast, even if the beer looks very clear when bottling.

2. That's an invitation to a holy war. All I'll say on it is that in my opinion, I make far better beer using all grain than extract. I don't think I've ever had a good beer made solely with "kits", though I have had many an excellent beer (such as the NZHC winning beers from James "Kempicus" Kemp) using kits as a base and adding specialty grains via steeping/mini-mash. For me, grain is cheaper, more satisfying, and more consistent. It's "harder" in that it takes longer and there's a lot more you need to be aware of, but (again, for me) the results are well worth it. I'd say try it on a friend's setup, decide if it's for you, and then you can make an informed decision before splashing out on the gear you'll need. Also, and very importantly, all grain isn't a silver bullet. If you make crappy beer from kits, you'll make crappy beer using all grain. :)

3. Not for a kit, sorry. There are a ton of great sites out there for recipes. See Glen's excellent sticky thread: http://www.forum.realbeer.co.nz/forum/topics/the-library

(Oooh, look at me, talking about homebrew for the first time in ages. I must be unwell.) ;)

[Stu McKinlay]

1. There will be enough yeast no matter what (assuming you are not filtering)
2. If you have the time then grain is the way to go for sure. The worst beer I've made with grain is better than the best beer I made with extract. In saying this, you can make pretty good beer with extract and it is a decent way to learn about the most important part of the brewing process (fermentation). The first step to making good beer - buy decent yeast!
3. Agree with Greig - if you are going to make kit beers to start off with, then stay clear of trying to make subtle beers. Big robust beers can get away with hiding the oxidised notes that extract beers always seem to have but the subtle beers really highlight any issues. The other thing Greig doesn't mention about James Kemp was that he specialised in really strong ales (beers that get away with not having the best ingredients).

[Simon David kelly]

Could you get the wheat required by boiling 500g flaked wheat in 18 litres and then passing it through a strainer, then adding the lightest extract you can get and continuing on as normal?

[jt]

Wouldn't you need some pale grain with that ?

[Llew Bardecki]

Yeah, the flaked wheat is pre-gelatinized, which means the starch is useable, but it's not pre-converted so you'd still need to mash it, along with something that had enzymes (e.g. pale malt) to convert those starches to sugar.

[Simon David kelly]

Good point. Didn't think about that, back to the drawing board.

[Simon David kelly]

As a newbie you can go no better than having a read of this book How to Brew. The third edition is out and it contains even more good stuff. I don't expect there to be may on this site that haven't read it at least once.

[Llew Bardecki]

1. Just what Greig and Stu said!

2. You can make very good beer with extract. So long as you add some nice fresh steeping grains and hops you'll be able to produce beers of a similar quality to the best all-grain brews.
I prefer all-grain myself because it's cheaper and more flexible (e.g. you can control the fermentability of your wort to give a drier or a fuller bodied beer, you can add adjuncts like flaked oats in a stout that you can't with extract, etc.)

3. It is possible to make a decent hefeweizen with extract. The key is finding good wheat malt extract, and a good yeast.
The extract is available at Brewer's Coop (though it's pricey... Around $50 for a 4kg tub of Weyermann wheat beer extract.) I believe this stuff is 50/50 wheat malt and pils malt extract. You'd end up with a pretty decent hefe if you just boiled up all 4kg of it with about 10-15g of a low alpha German-heritage hop like Pacifica or NZ Hallertau.

If anything the yeast is even more important than the extract. You'll need a proper hefeweizen strain, which probably means using liquid yeast.
I don't have much experience with liquid yeast in NZ, though I understand you can get it from Craftbrewer in Australia, or as part of one of the regular realbeer.co.nz bulk orders straight from Wyeast. Alternatively, you can grow some yeast out of a bottle of a commercial NZ hefe. I've used Emerson's with success in the past.

And finally, just because I'm a bit of a pedant, especially when it comes to beer, I feel compelled to point out that Hoegaarden is a Belgian witbier, not a German hefeweizen. Despite the similarities, they're really quite different. Try a Schneider Weiss or something next to a Hoegaarden, or a Tuatara Hefe next to a Three Boys wheat, and you'll see what I mean :)

Happy Brewing!

[Dan]

Hey guys, many thanks for all your input - that's awesome! I've got a bit of homework to do now :0)

[Daron]

Hi Dan. I used Weyermann extract in this recipe (you get 2 batches as it only calls for 2kg of extract). It's a partial extract recipe so needs steeping grains.

The recipe is a little unusal with it calling for honey. I'm no fan of mead and although you pickup the honey in it it's not overpowering. I think if I used a better yeast and controlled temp a little better it would come out fantastic. As it stands its definitley drinkable and passes as a German Hefe with a thick creamy head and a tang citrus finish.



(20litres, extract with grains)
OG = 1.049 FG = 1.010 IBU = 19

Ingredients
• 220gr. light crystal malt
• 220gr. flaked wheat
• 220gr. flaked oats
• 220gr. malted wheat
• 220gr. pilsner malt
• 2KG. Weyermann weizen malt extract syrup
• 1 cups light honey
• 4 AAU Styrian Goldings hops(14gr. of 8% alpha acid)
• 2 AAU Styrian Goldings hops(14gr. of 4% alpha acid)
• Safbrew WB-06 wheat yeast

Step by Step
Steep the crystal, wheat and pilsner malts, plus the oats and flaked wheat, in a grain bag in 10litres water at 65deg C for 45 minutes. Remove the grains and rinse back into the brew kettle (through a colander) with an additional Litre of hot tap water.
Add malt extract syrup and honey to kettle, bring to a boil. Add first hops, boil 30 minutes. Add 2nd hops, boil 15 minutes, remove from heat.. Top up in fermenter to 20litres, cool to 20deg C and pitch yeast. Ferment one week at 20deg C, rack to secondary and condition two weeks at 12.5 deg C F. Prime with sugar drops, bottle and age three weeks at 10° C.